MIAMI, Fla. – The No. 7 Florida State beach volleyball team split its first day of the Surf N Turf Invitational hosted by FIU in South Beach, dropping its first match to No. 2 UCLA and taking down TCU on Friday (March 30).

FSU fell to the Bruins for the second time this season, but defeated the Horned Frogs for the fourth time in a row to stay undefeated in the series. The long point that TCU picked up in Friday’s match is the only one the Seminoles have ever surrendered to the Horned Frogs in the series.

With her win in the No. 2 position with Macy Jerger, senior Tory Paranagua is now tied for the most career dual match victories in program history with an 85-23 record.

The Seminoles will play three matches in the second day of the event on Saturday (March 31), taking on conference opponents Tulane and No. 12 FIU followed by No. 11 Grand Canyon.

The Seminoles started off the event against its toughest competition – the UCLA Bruins. The two teams met earlier this season at the East Meets West Challenge in Manhattan Beach, Calif. where the Bruins took the 3-2 decision.

While UCLA took the first team point with a win at the No. 3 position, Florida State tied up the score with a win at No. 2 from Katie Horton and Hailey Luke – the pair’s 14th win of the season. From there, the Bruins picked up another pair of wins at No. 4 and No. 1 to clinch the win.

The Seminoles got off to a quick start in their second match of the first day, picking up a pair of wins at No. 5 and No. 2 for a 2-0 lead. Katie Horton and Hailey Luke earned their team-leading 15th win, clinching the match for the Seminoles.

The match finished with a fourth team point from the new pairing of Molly McBain and Alaina Chacon and a lone point for the Horned Frogs with a win at the No. 1 position.

Scouting Saturday’s Competition

Match #3: Tulane

Tulane has lost four of its last five matches and enters the weekend on a three-match losing streak, falling to No. 17 Stetson, No. 20 Florida Atlantic and No. 10 LSU at the Tiger Beach Challenge.

Madeline Mertz and Kaylie McHugh have been dominant at the No. 1 position for the Green Wave, going 13-4 on the first court this season. The lineup has seen the most turnover at the No. 5 position, with eight different pairs competing for Tulane on the fifth court.

Florida State is undefeated against Tulane, posting a 9-0 all-time record in the series. FSU has defeated Tulane five times in neutral territory, with one of those wins coming at the 2017 CCSA Championships.

Match #4: No. 12 FIU

FIU is on a nine-match winning streak after going 4-0 at the Saint Leo Invitational after taking down Saint Leo, Jacksonville, Eckerd and Florida Southern. The team has three ranked wins this season, defeating No. 13 TCU, No. 17 Florida Atlan­tic, and No. 15 Stetson — all as the eleventh-ranked team.

The Panthers’ duo of Margherita Bianchin/Federica Frasca have been dominating the No. 1 position, as they are on a 12-match win streak and are 19-1 so far this season. Mariana Dal Pozzo and Taija Thomas have also stayed consistent this season, picking up a 12-1 record as a pair at the No. 5 position.

Florida State holds a 7-2 record against Florida International, with five of those wins coming in neutral territory.

Match #5: No. 11 Grand Canyon

GCU faced a tough schedule early on this season, facing five ranked opponents in their first six matches. The Antelopes dropped close 2-3 decisions against No. 14 Cal Poly, No. 6 LSU and No. 1 USC in February.

The Antelopes will face six ranked teams this weekend at the Surf N Turf Invitational, with four of their opponents ranked in the AVCA Top-10.

Florida State is undefeated against Grand Canyon, earning wins in Tallahassee, Phoenix and Baton Rouge, La.

Records to Watch

With an 85-23 dual record, Paranagua is tied with Jace Pardon (85-15) for the most career dual match victories in program history.

Her 97-27 overall record is the sixth-most wins earned by a Seminole in program history.

Three more wins makes her the fifth player in FSU history to record 100 overall wins.

Her 14-6 record at the No. 1 position is tied for sixth in program history. She needs three wins to tie Brooke Kuhlman’s record (17-12).

Her 43-7 record at the No. 2 position is the second most ever earned at FSU. Two more wins will take the record (Kristina Pellitteri leads with a 44-8 record).

Vanessa Freire

Her 81-29 career dual record ranks third in program history, behind Paranagua’s 85 wins and Jace Pardon’s 85.

Her 85-31 career overall wins ranks 9th all-time.

Her 36-13 record in the No. 2 position ranks third all-time behind Paranagua’s 42 wins and Pellitteri’s 44.

Katie Horton now holds the record for most wins at the No. 4 position with a 30-11 record. Francesca Goncalves and Hailey Luke are both tied for the sixth-most wins on the fourth court, each with a 15-4 record.

Four current players rank in the top-5 for most wins at No. 5, as Hailey Luke leads with a 42-16 record, followed by Eva Torruella coming in second (21-6), Nikki Esposito coming in third (18-11) and Molly McBain tied for fourth with a 15-5 record.

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